God Loves Me And My Bikini

First of all: I try to stay out of trending Facebook fads and popular discussions- this is for personal reasons, not because I find them petty or out of place.  I don't mean to sound preachy or judgy and if I come across that way, I sincerely apologize: that is not my intention.

However, something is trending right now that is laying heavily on my conscious and I have a thought to share in regards to the recent articles traveling all over my mini-feed about Christian women and two-piece bathing suits.  It may not come as a surprise to some of you that I frequent the bikini swimsuit style.  I find them comfortable, cute, modest and they result in easier tan lines. That's pretty much it.  I can personally vouch for the modesty of certain two-piece bikinis. Really. Not all of them are as skimpy as they are made out to be. I try not to put anything I deem immodest or inappropriate on my body.  Sometimes I fail, but hey, we all do that every now and then, don't we?

Coming from this side of the spectrum, I would just like to state that I am not a lesser Christian because of the swimwear choices I make. Nor are those of you women who are brave enough to commit to choosing one-pieces, or tankinis, or board shorts, or whatever you find comfortable and pleasing to the Lord, better Christians than those of us who choose to spend beach and pool-time in two separate articles of clothing.

I'm sure it was not the intention of the original authors or bloggers or researchers of these articles to make women like me feel this way, but the reality is that after reading and watching these recent articles and videos: I feel alienated, as though my feminine motives are constantly being morally questioned. I feel really harshly judged. And that has moved me to response.

The female body is an intensely attractive creation.  God made it to be intensely attractive and beautiful. Hips, midriffs, and thighs are not the only parts of our bodies that men find attractive.  Arms, collarbones, shoulders, knees, calves, ankles and feet (yes, bare feet) are all found equally as sexy and pleasing to the male psyche, because that is how we were created to be found.

If that is to be the basis for an argument representing why two-pieces are sinful, because they cause men to lust uncontrollably, where are we going to draw the line on what else we should omit because it might cause our Christian brother to stumble?  This frightens me.  Not because of the legalism it suggests for women, but for the blatant disrespect it shows to our Christian men.

Men: you are strong, capable, dependable, intellectual leaders. You are not slaves to your lust. I would like to apologize on behalf of my female sex for deeming you as slobbering, mindless, uncontrollable tail-chasers who simply can't help themselves when something they find attractive is placed in front of them.  You are not animals.  You are so much better than that.

Women: You are beautiful.  You were made to be beautiful. Modesty is undeniably the most beautiful attribute you can possess.  Modesty is synonymous with virtuousness, and you cannot be of high virtue unless you possess humility as well.  I would like to apologize on the behalf of popular culture which lies to you on a daily basis by telling you that sex sells, and that exploiting your body will bring you happiness.  That is horrendous, and wrong. You are not possessions. You are better than that.
I would also like to apologize to you, women, on the behalf of the members of our fair and gentle sex who forget that humility and grace are the two most virtuous attributes of modesty we are capable of possessing.  They forget that modesty of character is of equal import to modesty of body, and of mind. They forget that the battle is not to be waged against the bikini, but that the battle is to be waged against The Enemy, who has used self-righteousness and slander to manipulate us into fighting pettily amongst ourselves over who is better  for wearing more fabric and who is worse for allowing more hair follicles and skin pores to breathe in the sunlight.

Women, we are all better than that.

 Modesty is beautiful.  So is humility.  The two are so rarely intertwined, when they should constantly be found hand-in-hand.  Let's focus on changing that within ourselves first, before focusing on trying to change what other people choose to put on their bodies.

Remember: God loves us bikini-wearers, too.